August 2011
Dear Friends,
Many
of you will have heard that the Church Commissioners have decided
that the plan to bring this parish together with Warmingham should
proceed. This followed a meeting in
London
on 21st June at which Jenny Powell, our Church Warden,
presented a robust case against the proposal. No one should doubt
for a moment that the issues have been well and truly aired.
Those who have made
representations against the scheme have the right to seek leave to
appeal against the decision from the Judicial Committee of the
Privy Council. However, we have been told by the Church
Commissioners that such a move would be most unlikely to succeed.
I believe that this is the right decision, and that it will be in
the long term interests of both parishes. Our
PCC
have overwhelmingly backed this decision by two separate votes in
the past year. Both parishes will retain their own identity and
will continue, so far as I can see, with their existing pattern of
services. The fear that everything is about to change is
groundless. The
advantages of the new scheme include the fact that we have
created a full-time job for my successor (I currently am only
part-time), which means that the job will at a future date attract
more applicants. Further, there is the possibility of opening up
significant forms of co-operation across the two parishes. There
are 3 Readers attached to Warmingham;
St Peters
has none.
As
members of the Church of England we are bound by its
decision-making processes. Presumably we respect its traditions
and those placed in authority. We are not like some small
denominations where each local congregation makes its own rules.
As such, I hope and pray that we will all feel able to move
forward in the mission of the Church of England, the mission of
the new United Benefice of Leighton-cum-Minshull
Vernon
and Warmingham, and the mission of this particular parish.
Philip
